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Biking and strolling around London’s lively and history-rich neighborhoods was the highlight of my brief visit. Concierges at the InterContinental London Park Lane suggested great walking tours for London “insider’s experiences” (there’s even a private Stella McCartney boutique shopping visit for higher-end visitors).

I joined an Urban Gentry walking tour of the East End’s gritty-hip Shoreditch district. Stops included the Geffrye Museum of the Home, a fascinating repository of “middling class” décor, furnishings, and manners from 1600 to the present. Its handsome buildings once housed retired pensioners. Among the tidbits I learned: Instead of insecticides, many Elizabethans used strongly aromatic “lad’s love”—i.e., southernwood-to deter moths and flies.

The InterContinental hooked me up with wheels via London’s smart new fuel/planet-saving Boris bikes London cycle scheme. The city recently installed racks of loaner bikes all around town. You can check a cycle out at one rack and drop it off at any other, and you can use it free for 30 minutes each time!

Where to eat? Easy! London proved vegan-friendly as soon as I encountered InterContinental chef Paul Bates, a devotee of local and sustainable foods. Bates hails from Kent and enjoys preparing plant-based tapas and compotes. He oversees the Cookbook Café, whose “Market Table” teemed with beautiful salads and other creations. InterContinental’s hot dinner spot, Theo Randall, has a separate, mouthwatering vegan menu. Mushroom connoisseurs, rejoice! And don’t miss Theo’s clementine sorbet. Bookmark this restaurant guide before you visit: Vegan London.

A tip: Some pizza doughs and tomato sauces contain animal-derived ingredients, and some pastas contain eggs. However, the following recommendations are safe—and delicious—bets. They come from Urban Gentry’s Kevin Caruth and Mayfair/Belgravia tour guide Michelle McGrath.

Root Master serves vegan gourmet and comfort foods from a double-decker bus. You can eat onboard. Check for it around Elys Yard at Old Truman Brewery in Shoreditch.

5 Comments

Great list!. Another addition would be the lovely Pogo Café in Hackney (East London), which serves 100% vegan food, including very tasty cakes.

Tina says...

January 16th, 2011, 9:36 am

Thanks for the list! I also want to recommend Sagar, right next to to Covent Garden. They serve absolutely scrumptious south Indian vegetarian cuisine and have a separate vegan menu. Be sure to ask for the vegan options as the ordinary menu may contain dairy. Their vegan Masala Dosa melts in your mouth!

Robin says...

January 17th, 2011, 2:39 am

Yum – am adding your suggestions to my list for when I pass that way again.

Sharon Ferguson says...

January 22nd, 2011, 6:03 pm

Thanks so much for this great list! I’ve had problems finding good food in London my last couple of visits; this list will really help on my next!

Best says...

January 28th, 2011, 12:09 am

There is apparently a lot for me to discover outside of my books. Thanks for the fantastic read.

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